1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to lining pipes and, more particularly, to a slip molding apparatus for lining a pipe and method of using same.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is known to provide pipes for fluids such as water that are buried in the ground. Over time, these pipes can become cracked or broken, resulting in loss of fluid. Typically, the damaged buried pipe is dug up, removed, and replaced with a new pipe. However, this results in a large amount of labor and cost to replace the pipe.
It is often desirable to line damaged pipes with a material that is resistant to attack by products conveyed through the pipes and/or that provides heat or electrical insulation, or the like. Current lining methods employ fixed forms inserted into the pipes so that concrete or other material that can be chemically or thermally set may be introduced between the interior of the pipes and the forms. After the material has set to produce a solid lining, the forms must be removed. This is a time-consuming operation that is made more difficult if the pipe has a complex geometry.
One known method provides a form for producing a lining in a pipe. The form includes a body having a leading part and a trailing part, a hole in a leading side of the leading part and a channel in the body communicating with the hole. The body has a diameter at the leading part that is greater than the diameter of the trailing part. The channel has at least one peripheral opening situated rearwardly of the leading part of the form at a position to discharge lining material from the channel around the trailing part of the form, and a supply tube, or an attachment on the leading side for the supply tube, for supplying flowable settable lining material to and through the hole.
One disadvantage of the above-described form is that the form allows flow into intersecting pipes such that they are blocked by the lining materials. As a result, a secondary operation is need to clear or open the intersecting pipes. This is labor intensive and costly.
It is, therefore, desirable to provide a slip molding apparatus for lining a pipe that prevent flow into intersecting pipes so that they are not blocked by the lining materials. It is also desirable to provide a method for using the slip molding apparatus to line a pipe with a lining. It is further desirable to provide a simple, rapid and adaptable way of providing pipes with linings of this kind. It is still further desirable to provide a slip molding apparatus that can be used for intersecting pipes. Therefore, there is a need in the art to provide a slip molding apparatus and method of using the same that meets at least one of these desires.